(780) 961-3538 < Back Vimy Wado Kai Sensei Ian Shank (780) 961-3538 ilshank@mcsnet.ca Address 5016 50 Street, Sylvan Lake, AB, Canada Vimy, AB, Canada Practice Times Tuesday/Thursday - 7:00-8:00 pm (Mountain Daylight Time) Club Website or Social Media Notes Previous Map Next

(479) 531-7280 < Back NWA Wado Kai Karate Club Sensei Joanne Johnson (479) 531-7280 nwawadokai@gmail.com Address 4911 West Pleasant Grove Road, Rogers, AR, USA Rogers, AR, USA 72758 Practice Times Thursday all students - 6-8 pm (Central Daylight Time) Club Website or Social Media Notes Previous Map Next

(306) 530-6905 < Back Regina Shintani Wado Kai Karate Sensei Ryan McDonald (306) 530-6905 ryguy_1@sasktel.net Address 125 Paynter Crescent, Regina, SK, Canada Regina, SK, Canada Practice Times Tuesday - Just for kicks - 6:30-7:00 pm / Regular - 7:00-8:00 pm Advance - 8:00-9:00 pm (Central Standard Time) Club Website or Social Media Notes Previous Map Next

Brief History of Karate Some of the earliest origins of karate have been traced to the island of Okinawa in the Ryukyu Island chain. It is thought that a native style of self-defense developed here called te, or hand in English. Okinawa is within close distance to the coasts of Japan, China, Taiwan, and Korea. Thus there has been extensive influence from a number of Asian cultures in the subsequent history of this island. Karate as it has developed is thought to be an amalgamation of te with some prominent Chinese martial arts, such as Shaolin Temple Monk fist boxing. In early years, karate was translated as "Chinese hand". (kara = China / Chinese and te = hand) An early event germane to the development of karate, occurred in 1477 during the beginning of the newly formed Sho Dynasty (Reid & Croucher, 1983 ). In order to manage unruly warlords, the king proclaimed a ban on the carrying of swords, and had all weapons, and the warlords themselves, brought to court, where they could be monitored. In 1609 when the Japanese annexed Okinawa, they maintained the ban on the carrying of weapons. However, Japanese samurai were exempt from this edict. It is suggested that during this time both the art of the hand, as well as weapon arts, or kobudo, were developing. The nobility were studying mostly te, and the peasant classes developing weapons systems based upon the use of familiar, and available tools, such as rice flails (nunchaku), mill grindstone handles (tonfa), sickles (kama), and other implements. On Okinawa, te began to develop into three similar, but distinct systems. They were tied to the major geographical regions of Shuri, Tomari, and Naha. Reid & Croucher (1983) state that these differences may have emerged through the divergent influences coming into each region. Shuri-te evolved more from the influence of the harder Shaolin Temple style under the likes of Sokon Matsumura, and Naha-te, these being more closely related to the "inner" Chinese styles. They emphasized the cultivation of ki (a.k.a. chi), or life energy and was fostered by Kanryo Higaonna. In the early 1920's, an Okinawan school teacher under the tutelage of Anko Itosu, named Gichin Funakoshi, was observed by the Japanese Emperor's son performing a display of Shuri-te karate. Funakoshi was subsequently invited to Japan to demonstrate karate for the nation, and later went on to be charged with incorporating it into the regular Japanese school curriculum. Funakoshi's adaptations to shorin-style karate later became known as shotokan, a name adapted from his own authored pen name. In 1935, a multi-style coalition of karate masters met to decide on a common name for their teachings, and "karate" was decided upon, with a slight change in the meaning to "empty hand", a decision which reflects the independent political stance at the time. Tomari-te appears to adopt aspects of both the hard and soft of Shuri-te and Naha-te, and has been associated with Kosanku Matsumora. Towards the late 1800's, the Shuri and Tomari styles merged into what was called shorin-ryu (the small forest school). Shorin is the Okinawan pronunciation of "Shaolin" in Mandarin-Chinese. The shorin-based styles tend to be light and high in stance. Many styles have emerged from this line, including kobayashi-ryu under Chosin Chibana, matsubayashi-ryu under Shosin Nagamine, and the shorin-ryu of Yasutsune ("Anko") Itosu. Naha-te emerged as goju-ryu (hard and soft school) under the development of Chojun Miyagi, with the goju style placing emphasis on breathing and tension. Another school, shito-ryu is a combination of both goju and shorin styles, while uechi-ryu is very similar to goju.

(403) 700-3166 < Back Three Elements Karate Club Sensei Kevin Bowes (403) 700-3166 info@threeelementskarate.com Address 3602 8 St SW, Calgary, AB, Canada Calgary, AB, Canada Practice Times Monday - Family Class Intermediate - 6:30-7:30 pm (Mountain Daylight) Monday/Thursday - Family Class Beginner - 6:30-7:30 pm Monday/Thursday - Adult Class - 7:30-9:30 pm Club Website or Social Media Notes Previous Map Next

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(905) 414-8721 < Back Lakeside Karate Club Sensei Joe Peuyn (905) 414-8721 david.damude@gmail.com Address 14 Charlotte St, Port Colborne, ON, Canada Port Colborne, ON, Canada L3K 3C6 Practice Times Tuesday & Thursday - 6:30-8:00 pm Club Website or Social Media Notes Previous Map Next

SWKKF COMMITTEES Marketing & Communications This is placeholder text. To change this content, double-click on the element and click Change Content. Lire la suite Operations Lire la suite Proficiency This is placeholder text. To change this content, double-click on the element and click Change Content. Lire la suite Student Proficiency Bunkai Lire la suite Student Proficiency Self-Defense Lire la suite Student Proficiency Kumite Lire la suite Student Proficiency Kata Lire la suite Student Proficiency Shindo Lire la suite Student Proficiency Shintani Kata Lire la suite Visibility Lire la suite

(289) 929-0046 < Back Wolfpack Wado Kai Sensei Brian Chmay (289) 929-0046 bchmay@hotmail.com Address 5603 Spring Street, Niagara Falls, ON, Canada Niagara Falls, ON Canada L2G 1P7 Practice Times Thursday - 6:30 - 8:30 pm Club Website or Social Media Notes Previous Map Next

(519) 909-9438 < Back Jarvis Wado Kai Karate Club Sensei Marco Reyes (519) 909-9438 marcoreyes@gmail.com Address 19 Church Street, Jarvis, ON, Canada Jarvis, ON, Canada Practice Times Thursday Family Class - 6-7:30 pm (Eastern Daylight Time) Thursday Advance Class - 7:30-9:00 pm (Eastern Daylight Time) Club Website or Social Media Notes Previous Map Next

Harmonizer The SWKKF Newsletter The Harmonizer is the official SWKKF newsletter. It's an important piece of communication providing useful information to the membership. This includes internal and external commentaries, tournament listings, event details, information on workshops, personal experiences, karate news from all national regions, etc. Don't forget that it's your newsletter. Your input is critical to its ongoing success. We heartily welcome your contribution - share your thoughts and experiences with your fellow members. Forward your articles to us at harmonizer@shintani.ca Harmonizer is published 3 times a year at the end of February, June and November. Please contact us should you have any question. Your Harmonizer Committee harmonizer@shintani.ca Current Harmonizer Volume 34, Issue 1 - June 2025 Message from the President Finding Strength and Connection Through Karate Kudan Presentation Hanshi Fred Simonaitis Sensei Ron at the Delhi Karate Club When it's going your way The Power of Community The Sensei Jeff Gervin Memorial Fund A Canadian Karateka's Grading A Glimpse into the Art Here is my journey from white belt to yellow belt Karate With a Sibling R.E.A.C.H. 2025 Recipients Sensei Neil Prime Inducted into the CMAHOF Karate in the North The West is knockin, the East is Rocking What a Year and What and Honour Sensei Jim’s Visit to Nordik Wado Kai From the Logger & Atkinson Family From Your Harmonizer Committee Past Harmonizer Issues Download PDF Volume 01, Issue 1 - October 1996 World Union of Martial Arts Why Kata? Download PDF Volume 01, Issue 2 - March 1997 What Makes a Black Belt? Tournament Kata Practice Tips Training Past 35 Download PDF Volume 01, Issue 3 - June 1997 A Message from the Heart Hearst Wado Kai Karate Club Kata Practice Tips Download PDF Volume 02, Issue 1 - November 1997 Saskatchewan Trip - Nov 1997 A Judge's Perspective The Meaning of Pinan Club News - Calgary Wado-Kai Having Fun at Karate

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